Not only do people like the decorative uses for them my mother used them as planters when I was growing up but other distilleries or breweries will sometimes buy old barrels off of companies to get the unique, flavorful taste of their wood into their own brews.
For example, scotches are only stored in barrels that have been used before. Usually, they are barrels formerly used to store sherry or other wines. Likewise, many beer companies will buy whiskey barrels to store certain batches of their beers in. View Larger Image. Reusing Barrels Perhaps not surprisingly, there is a huge market for used whiskey barrels.
Facebook Twitter Tumblr Pinterest. Related Posts. July 7th, 0 Comments. June 30th, 0 Comments. June 16th, 0 Comments. May 24th, 0 Comments. May 21st, 0 Comments. The exact nature of these is not fully understood, but it is believed they include some of the essential oils from the malted barley and other cereals and substances that derive from the peat. The amount of these secondary constituents retained in the spirit depends upon the shape of the still and the way it is operated and also on the strength at which the spirit is drawn off.
Grain Whisky, because of the process by which it is made, contains fewer secondary constituents than Malt Whisky and is accordingly milder in flavour and aroma. The natural elements of water, peat and the Scottish climate all certainly have a profound effect on the flavour of Scotch Whisky. Water is probably the most important single factor and a source of good, soft water is essential to a distillery. The Scottish climate is extremely important, particularly when the whisky is maturing.
At this stage the soft air permeates the casks and works on the whisky, eliminating harsher constituents to produce a mellow whisky. Why do whiskies produced in different distilleries vary in flavour? This again is a question which it is very difficult to answer with certainty. Most people would agree that the water used is the decisive factor. Adjoining distilleries which draw their water from different sources are known to produce whiskies that are quite dissimilar in flavour.
The size and shape of the stills are also important as are the skill and experience of the men who manage them. It is the objective of the distiller to produce a whisky whose flavour and character remain consistent at all times and in all circumstances. This is the true art of distilling, acquired only after many years and often handed down from one generation to the next.
How many distilleries are there? There are around Pot Still Malt distilleries and Grain, or Patent Still, distilleries in Scotland; but the number working can vary from year to year. Can Scotch Whisky be made only in Scotland? Many other products which were originally manufactured only in a particular locality have lost their geographical significance and can now be manufactured anywhere.
This is widely recognised in law throughout the world. Thus, whisky may be described as Scotch Whisky only if it has been wholly distilled and matured in Scotland for a minimum of 3 years. If you could duplicate exactly a Scotch Whisky distillery in, say, Brazil or Spain, could you produce Scotch? Attempts have been made to copy the unique flavour of Scotch Whiskies in many parts of the world, but with no success whatsoever.
Learn more on the whisky making process by joining one of our virtual whisky tastings. Sign up for a group tasting , or book a place on one of our monthly tastings here. Scotch Whisky Experience. Plan your visit. These casks then found their way to Scotland where they were put to very good use maturing whisky. Nowadays there is such a huge demand for sherry casks that some Spanish wine makers make sherry purely for conditioning whisky casks.
Nevertheless, due to the lesser consumption of Sherry wines and the increasing demand for Sherry casks for the whisky industry, distillers have been looking for other alternatives. For Bourbon whiskeys, it is a different story, because their regulation obliged them to be matured in virgin oak barrels, which means that barrels used for maturing Bourbon whiskies cannot have previously held another alcoholic beverage.
Nowadays, a huge amount of ex-bourbon American oak barrels are being shipped to Scotland to be used as second-hand casks to mature Scotch whiskies as an alternative to fortified wine casks. This is a concept where the whisky is transferred in a different second-hand cask to finish its maturation and gets more complexity from a cask, which used to mature another wine or spirit.
During construction at the cooperage, the inside of the cask is exposed to fire. The same occurs with lignin that breaks into aldehydes and phenyl ketones vanilla , guaiacol smoky , eugenol cloves and other aromatic compounds. Charring burns the wood to a point where the surface breaks and leaves the wood with a surface that looks like an alligator skin. The interior of charred casks is black and has a lot of ash residue, resulting in a dark color for the whisky.
As far as flavor goes, charred wood imparts sweeter flavors like caramel and honey. The reason for this is that the wood sugars are caramelized when heavily burned. Charring also breaks down the oak cracking its surface so better allowing the spirit to seep deep into the wood. Toasting just darkens the top of the wood and acts in the depth of the staves. It leaves the wood with a black flat layer on top.
Unlike their charred brethren, toasted barrels are heated much more gently, resulting in a dark brown toast rather than a blackened char.
Toasted barrels add a bit more vanilla flavor to the liquor, as well as spicy accents. Toasted barrels also do not impart as much color into the spirit, resulting in a lighter shade. European casks tend to be only lightly toasted while American casks can be very heavily toasted. The size of a barrel also plays a role in defining the whisky. Generally, smaller barrels mature whisky a lot faster than large barrels. This is because there is a greater wood to liquid ratio in small barrels, meaning that the liquid is in contact with a lot more wood than in a larger cask.
The cost of production is higher when using smaller barrels, but many argue whisky matures more gracefully in larger casks. The last point about second-hand casks is the number of times they are being used. The more you use a cask the less flavors it will release into the whisky.
Most often, casks are rejuvenated before being refilled. To do this distillers scratch the inside of a cask back to fresher wood before re-charring or toasting it. This restores vanilla and caramel flavors, but also result in a spicier flavor. Casks that are maintained in this way can last for up to years. A new barrel, that is to say a barrel that is holding single malt for the first time but may have held Sherry, Port, Bourbon…previously , is called a first fill barrel and has the most profound effect on the spirit because there is still a lot of the original liquid remnant in the barrel.
A barrel used for the second time is called a second fill barrel and has less of an effect on the spirit. Casks can be used three to four times, but afterwards the wood will have lost most of its flavors. Increased demand for casks in the whisky industry has also contributed to the rise of cask prices. But saving money is not the only factor. Red Wine Aroma Kits 12 or 24 aromas. White Wine Aroma Kits 12 or 24 aromas. Wine Faults Aroma Kit 12 aromas 1. Cognac Aroma Kits 12 or 24 cognac aromas Discover.
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